US guards 'did nothing' to stop adult prisoners from raping juveniles

Michigan prison officials needlessly housed juvenile inmates with adult convicts, where the guards then ignored allegations that the young inmates were sexually abused and essentially used as currency inside the facility, according to a new lawsuit.

Brought forth by seven unnamed juvenile prisoners, the case
hinges on the idea that the Michigan Department of Corrections
(MDOC) has consistently failed to keep prisoners under the age of
18 apart from the more hardened adult inmates. It alleges that at
least two of the plaintiffs were repeatedly raped because their
older cellmates were selling access to the younger ones. It goes
on to implicate corrections officers for allowing the rape to
continue.

“MDOC staff was aware of the assaults and aware that male
adult prisoners were paying John Doe 5’s cellmate access for
access to John Doe 5 for purposes of sexually assaulting
him,” the suit claims.

Deborah LeBelle, an attorney based in Ann Arbor, told MLive.com
that she was aware of the suit when it was initially filed in
October, but decided to bring it back to light because of the
seriousness of the allegations. When the suit was re-filed, it
was classified as a violation of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights
Act, a Michigan law that forbids differential treatment based on
religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, height, weight,
familial status, or marital status.

LeBelle told the Michigan news site she was stunned that teens
who may have barely gone through puberty are locked up with
adults – which also increases their risk of recidivism.

“I didn’t know the extent of the damage those choices had
wrought in Michigan until I started talking to the youth,”
she said. “And, I found it heartbreaking…If you put all of
these together; I saw it as a tragic waste.”

The class-action suit cites seven plaintiffs, but was filed on
behalf of more than 500 others who have been put in dangerous
situations because of treatment from staff and inmates. It also
accuses the MDOC of violating the Prison Rape Elimination Act by
failing to adhere to guidelines that demand prisoners under the
age of 18 have no sight, sound, or physical contact with adult
prisoners.

At least two prisoners claim they were not only raped by fellow
convicts, but also victimized by MDOC staff.

“From late 2012 until early 2013, a female MDOC staff member
repeatedly opened John Doe 4’s cell for purposes of engaging in
coerced sexual intercourse with him,” the suit claims.

Another has come forward to assert that he was sent to solitary
confinement for reporting a staff member who let an older inmate
into his cell to rape him.

“Upon his release from solitary confinement, John Doe 2 was
physically assaulted again with a knife, resulting in a scar
across the face and marking him as a victim and an ongoing target
for other prisoners,” the suit claims.

The victims are seeking more than $25,000 in damages. The suit
was filed in Washtenaw Trial Court, with the MDOC, various MDOC
staff members, and Michigan Governor Rick Snyder named as
defendants.

The re-filing comes after the MDOC filed a motion to dismiss an
unrelated lawsuit from the union representing corrections
officers. Hundreds of guards previously signed onto a suit
claiming the MDOC violated state and federal labor laws by
refusing to pay corrections officers for time spent before and
after each shift, when they made and received reports, inspected
equipment, and received new assignments.